Reform Judaism transitions to transgender acceptance

The Union for Reform Judaism (URJ), an American denomination in the Jewish Reform movement, on Thursday adopted a resolution to encourage gender-neutral bathrooms, language, and training in its affiliated institutions.

The Resolution on the Rights of Transgender and Gender Non-Conforming People lists nine points outlining URJ’s commitment to the “full equality” of people of all “gender identities and gender expressions.” These include urging congregations to make restrooms available for transgender persons, and encouraging them to adapt prayers so gender non-conforming individuals feel welcome.

To facilitate the transition, URJ will provide a pamphlet educating rabbis, youth teachers, and other leaders on how to address likely questions.

“How do you deal with bathrooms?” asked Rabbi Jonah Dov Posner, listing some of the expected inquiries. “How do you deal with language? How do you deal with prayer?”

The pamphlet eases into these questions with a “Genderbread Person” diagram that uses arrows and a rainbow-colored brain to locate “identity,” a waving hand for “expression,” and a purple male/female/trans symbol at the groin for “sex.”

The authors frame the guide within “Jewish tradition [that] teaches all humans are created … ‘in God’s image.’” Suggestions include inviting transgender Jews to speak in synagogues and replacing written “gendered titles and honorifics” (such as Mr., Mrs., and Ms.) with first names. Since the policy extends to religious schools, all the way down to preschool, some congregations may begin sorting students by birth month rather than into groups of boys and girls.

The URJ decision comes at a time when debate over public accommodation for transgender persons is becoming more widespread. Just two days before the URJ announcement, residents of Houston overwhelmingly defeated a ballot initiative that would have made gender identity and sexual orientation protected classes. Opponents argued such a law would base public restroom access on gender-identification, rather than biological gender. The same day, a U.S. Department of Education office ruled against a Chicago school district for discriminating against transgender students by refusing boys access to girls’ locker rooms.

While URJ’s decision is generating a lot of buzz in mainstream media as a win for transgender activists, Reform Movement Jews represent only a sliver of American religious culture. Of the roughly 4.2 million American Jews who identify as religious, just 1.5 million identify with the Reform Judaism movement, according to a 2013 Pew Research Center survey. That’s about 0.5 percent of the total U.S. population.

Christian denominations that recognize gay and lesbian members but do not formally recognize transgender persons include the Episcopal Church (reporting 2 million total members) and the United Church of Christ (1 million), in contrast to orthodox groups such as the U.S. Catholic Church (69.4 million) and the Southern Baptist Convention (15.5 million).

These last two, like URJ, claim creation “in God’s image” as the basis for human dignity, but they also retain another line from the Jewish (and Christian) tradition: “male and female He made them.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.